Court Orders Texas Man and Cambridge Financial Advisors to Pay $13 Million in Commodity Pool Fraud That Sent Investor Money to Costa Rica

Published Nov. 9, 2026. Case status is current as of that date.

The pitch was a 20-year-old trading firm with a hedging strategy that made money whether commodity prices went up or down. A federal court in Texas has now found the pitch was false. On Nov. 3, 2026, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission announced that the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas entered a default judgment against Walter Dunning Larrick III and his company, Cambridge Financial Advisors LLC, ordering them to pay a $9,767,625 civil monetary penalty and $3,255,875 in restitution [1].

Status: This is a civil case. A default judgment is generally entered when a defendant does not respond to or defend a lawsuit; the CFTC release does not describe the procedural history. In entering it, the court found that the defendants "fraudulently solicited and misappropriated more than $3 million from participants," according to the CFTC [1]. The judgment resolves all claims in the CFTC's 2023 complaint. We found no confirmed criminal charge against Larrick in an official U.S. source (see note below).

How the scheme worked

The CFTC filed its complaint on Aug. 23, 2023, describing Larrick as a former Corpus Christi, Texas, resident and Cambridge as a Texas LLC he owned and controlled [2]. According to that complaint, as summarized by the CFTC:

• From at least November 2020 through at least January 2023, the defendants solicited and pooled at least $3,644,817.52 from about 70 people, supposedly to trade futures and options.
• They told investors that Cambridge had been in business for over 20 years with a record of profitable returns; that it was U.S.-based and would keep funds in a U.S. bank account; that it would trade natural gas, oil and gold futures and options bought in discounted "blocks"; that its hedging strategy "ensured the profitability of its trading regardless of whether the price of the underlying commodity rose or fell"; and that investors could withdraw at any time.
• Instead, the defendants sent most of the money to offshore accounts in Costa Rica, spent much of the rest on Larrick's personal expenses, and made Ponzi-like payments to earlier investors.
• They issued false account statements showing trading returns that were never earned. When investors asked for their money, they were ignored or stalled.

In the Nov. 3 judgment, the court found the defendants falsely represented they would use participant funds to trade futures and options, misrepresented the profitability of trading with them, issued false account statements, and misappropriated funds by making Ponzi-like payments, paying Larrick's personal expenses, and sending money to offshore accounts in Costa Rica [1]. The court also permanently enjoined the defendants from further violations and imposed permanent trading and registration bans.

The CFTC thanked Costa Rica's securities regulator, the Superintendencia General de Valores (SUGEVAL), for assistance [2].

The defendants and their status

• Walter Dunning Larrick III, described by the CFTC in 2023 as a former Corpus Christi, Texas, resident. Civil default judgment (N.D. Tex.): $9,767,625 penalty and $3,255,875 restitution (with Cambridge), permanent injunction, trading and registration bans [1].
• Cambridge Financial Advisors LLC, Texas LLC. Same judgment.

The CFTC release does not say whether any money has been recovered, or whether investors are likely to receive restitution. Court-ordered restitution in a default judgment can be difficult to collect.

Unconfirmed report: On Aug. 10, 2026, The Tico Times reported that Costa Rica's Judicial Investigation Agency (OIJ) detained a 46-year-old U.S. citizen in San José on Aug. 4 on an international arrest warrant sought by the FBI for fraud and money laundering, identifying him only by the surname "Dunning" [3]. The Tico Times itself noted that Costa Rican and U.S. authorities had not confirmed that the man detained is the defendant in the CFTC case. We have not found a U.S. charging document or Justice Department release, so any criminal case remains unconfirmed.

Red flags

These are general warning signs, not claims about any person beyond what the court found.

• A trading firm promises a strategy that profits whether prices rise or fall.
• Claims of decades in business that you cannot verify.
• The firm or person is not registered with the CFTC or NFA. "If an entity is unregistered, a customer should be wary of providing funds to that entity," the CFTC said in its 2023 release [2].
• Account statements and an online portal run by the firm itself, not an independent futures broker.
• Delays and excuses when you ask to withdraw, or pressure to "reinvest."
• Money is routed to overseas bank accounts.

What to do if you're targeted

• Check registration at NFA's BASIC database before investing in any futures or commodity pool.
• Ask where your money will be held, and confirm directly with the futures commission merchant that an account exists in your name or the pool's name.
• Be skeptical of cold calls about commodity trading.
• Report suspected fraud to the CFTC at 866-FON-CFTC (866-366-2382) or online at cftc.gov, and to the FBI at ic3.gov.

Case status (as of Nov. 9, 2026)

Defendant	Court	Status	Source
Walter Dunning Larrick III	U.S. District Court, N.D. Tex. (CFTC civil action filed Aug. 23, 2023)	Default judgment entered (announced Nov. 3, 2026): $9,767,625 civil penalty, $3,255,875 restitution, permanent injunction and trading/registration bans; criminal case unconfirmed	[1], [2], [3]
Cambridge Financial Advisors LLC	Same	Same default judgment	[1], [2]

Statuses can change. The CFTC releases do not give a case number.

Sources

1. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Release No. 9320-26, "CFTC Secures Court Order Directing Texas Man and His Company to Pay Over $13 Million in Commodities Fraud," Nov. 3, 2026. https://www.cftc.gov/PressRoom/PressReleases/9320-26
2. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Release No. 8768-23, "CFTC Charges Texas Man and His Company with Fraud and Misappropriation," Aug. 23, 2023. https://www.cftc.gov/PressRoom/PressReleases/8768-23
3. The Tico Times, "American Detained in Costa Rica Over $3.6 Million Investment Fraud Case," Aug. 10, 2026 (identity not confirmed by authorities). https://ticotimes.net/2026/08/10/american-detained-costa-rica-investment-fraud

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